NASUWT Blog

No to Austerity - Yes to workers' rights

By NASUWT, Oct 3 2015 04:29PM

Jeremy Corbyn's overwhelming victory in the Labour leadship election shows the strength of the mood in the country to fight austerity. Corbyn speaking out against austerity will help give hope to those who want to see the back of the Tories - we need to amplify that opposition outside parliament. We can't wait 5 years until the next election to do this - we need to mobilise the new mood for change now, and that is why we are calling on Unison members to join the national TUC march at the Tory conference on October 4th.

Oxfordshire Transport to the march - free to Unison members and their families. Book your seats online today.

On Sunday 4 October, the Conservative party will open their annual conference in Manchester. After five years of austerity, falling living standards, pay freezes and huge cuts to public services, a new parliament won’t offer a fresh start to working people and their families. The Conservatives’ new plan is an old plan - back to the future with more of the same.

We were told that austerity measures were a necessary, short, sharp dose of medicine . But five years later, the prescription is the still same. More plans to privatise public services, like the NHS. The government telling hardworking people, like midwives, teachers and transport workers, that they must work harder and longer. Public servants’ pay frozen for 4 more years. Threats to jobs in the public sector. Plans to sell off social housing. Cutting tax credits, disability benefits and help with the rent. Unfair targeting of young people.

Locally Oxfordshire County Council is planning over £150 million cuts over the next 5 years, including the clousre of 44 family centres imapcting on the health and well being of local childen. Local Health Services are in crisis as hospitals fail to recruit and staff struggle with rocketing rents and frozen wages. We need to defend our ability to ue our collective strength to challenge the cuts and fight for wage rises and action on services.

Trade unions have a proud tradition of standing up for workers, their families and the services everyone uses. So now the government is threatening the right to strike.

In the trade union bill, they propose to make it harder for unions to take strike action to oppose their cuts. They want to make it harder for workers to speak out - allowing employers to use agency workers to break strikes and putting huge restrictions on pickets and protests. In short, they want to silence millions of union members and threaten their right to strike.

So we all need to speak out now. March in Manchester on Sunday 4 October and tell the Conservatives that we say “No!” to austerity. And tell them that workers need a voice. That trade unions give workers a voice. "NO" to austerity, a resounding “Yes!” to workers’ rights.

More reasons to march on October 4th:

1 This government has announced attacks on trade union subs collection and further barriers to workers workers taking legal strike action

2 This government plans to cut £12bn from welfare hitting the most vulnerable in our society hardest.

3 The richest 1,000 people in Britain doubled their wealth during the last parliament, while the living standards of the majority fell.

4 There has been a huge rise in zero hour contracts, precarious, low-paid and part-time work. Millions of people are not benefiting from the supposed economic 'recovery'.

5 The Tories have presided over the worst housing crisis in living memory. They are the friends of private landlords and property - developers. Now they want to sell off even more social' housing.

6 The Tories are pushing privatisation. They want to encourage international free trade deals which will destroy the public sector.

7 Our NHS is under attack. The government plans to dismantle the NHS and sell it off to private companies to run for profit.

8 Education is being savaged. The Tories are threatening to raise university fees even higher. Academies and free schools are taking over, denying any democratic control over our children's education.

9 Migrants are facing a racist backlash. They are being scapegoated for the problems caused by the bankers and bosses.